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Westborough residents press board over transparency as town prepares matching funds for MassTrails grant
Summary
Residents urged the Select Board to delay an article seeking $61,105 in free cash to match a potential MassTrails award for the Beewalt trail, saying the application and project governance lacked transparency; planners say the match is required for a $400,000 award and staff will not spend money unless the grant is accepted.
At its Sept. 30 meeting the Town of Westborough Select Board faced sustained public concern about Article 6 on the fall Special Town Meeting warrant: a request to authorize $61,105 in free cash to meet the 20% match for a possible $400,000 MassTrails grant to continue design work on Section 2 of the Boston–Worcester Airline Trail (BWALT).
Joanne Aramini, a resident of 7 Meadow Road, told the board she did not understand why the warrant included the match when the town had not yet been awarded the grant and when, she said, the application process lacked transparency: “The grant was filed in the dead of night,” she said, adding that promised board review had not occurred.
Planning Director Jenny Gingras told the board the $400,000 grant requires a 20% local match; the town currently has $38,895 set aside from prior articles and seeks the additional $61,105 from free cash so the award can be accepted if granted. Gingras said the MassTrails request would fund continued design work toward 100% design and potential TIP (Transportation Improvement Program) submittal. She added that the consultant needed limited remaining work (about $18,000) to explore alternatives near the wastewater treatment plant because of wetland concerns.
Several residents and board members raised technical and process questions. Kevin Barry said the project has already cost the town significant sums and pressed the board to pause until wetlands flagging and a pending consultant quote are resolved. He warned that if wetlands impacts exceed certain thresholds, segments could be closed to the trail (“if this wetlands flagging goes over that 5,000 square foot limit, then it can’t go through there”), a point Gingras and consultants will examine as they develop alternate alignments and mitigation options.
Gingras stressed that the MassTrails award is discretionary and that the town would have the option to accept or decline the grant if awarded. Planning staff also noted the state (and MassTrails) would review any designs submitted for TIP or construction funding and that project acceptance and spending would follow those approvals.
The Select Board voted to place Article 6 on the fall warrant after extended debate. Several board members said they wanted voters to have the opportunity to weigh in while reserving the board’s ability to decline a grant or to withhold spending if feasibility studies identify insurmountable constraints.
Next steps: staff expects to receive the grant announcement soon and will return updates on wetland assessments and the consultant’s alternatives work. Any acceptance of the award or allocation of the free-cash match will be subject to separate authorization steps.
